(Todd A. Smith)
Critics of Black voters often say that Black people cast their ballots for Black political candidates only because of the color of their skin.
To many critics, that is why so many Black Americans casted their 2024 presidential ballots for former Vice President Kamala Harris, while criticizing the Black men who supported President Donald Trump.
But if Black Americans voted simply by skin color, Black Republicans would do better with Black voters, and Black MAGA Republicans like Va. Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears might now have the moniker of Gov.-elect of the Commonwealth of Virginia., instead of the label going to her Democratic opponent, Gov.-elect Abigail Spanberger.
Mahalia Otshudy of The Root reported, “In the polls, Spanberger had a landslide victory by securing 57.4 percent votes, according to NBC News. Her history-making win turned Virginia’s governorship from a Republican majority to a Democratic majority, leaning the state further to the left. A big part of that was thanks to Black voters, as nine in 10 voters supported Spanberger, ABC reported.
On TikTok, political science content creator and Harvard University alum Da’Vion Tatum opined, “…There’s often been a narrative that Black people will vote just for anyone who is Black, no matter their policies, no matter what they stand for, Black people just vote for the Black candidate. But these numbers prove otherwise. These numbers reveal that Black people are not monolithic…That we care about people and politicians who demonstrate that they care about the people as well…That they care about us.”
However, the GOP has not grasped that concept as they attempt to diversify their voting bloc, while also simultaneously removing diversity programs across the country, which might benefit the Black people.
Because many in the GOP do not understand many Black voters, the Republican Party still struggles to get significant chunks of the Black vote despite movements like Candace Owens’ Blexit (or Black exit from the Democratic Party) and their attempted debates at Historically Black Colleges and Universities.
Black people are not a monolith as Tatum stated on TikTok.
People often say that during election season.
But like many other groups of people, small or large, they vote for the politicians and policies that they feel like is best for them, their families and their community.
And for many Black voters, the policies that they like the most still come from the Democratic Party, not the GOP.
It is time for the Republican Party to present ideas that move the Black community forward, not just performative gestures from token Black people who must believe that a few Black faces within the party would make us cancel our “cookout” and attend the GOP’s bonfire.
Yes, the Black community should not be too loyal to the Democratic Party because as Jackie Robinson once said, why would the GOP do anything for the Black community when they know they will not get our votes?
Likewise, why would the Democratic Party do anything for the Black community when they know they will automatically get their vote?
Black people should adopt a free agency mindset when voting and go with the group that offers the best package or deal.
But even though many Black people lean conservatively on social issues because of religious beliefs, the GOP constantly shoots themselves in the foot with Black voters by accepting racism and White nationalism from within their ranks.
Many support the ending of programs that tried to help the Black community get a foot up in a country that is designed to benefit only White people.
Even Black people who have slipped through the cracks of American White supremacy, often have family members and friends who struggle to make it in society.
One of my mother’s former co-workers would tell her that the Republicans implemented policies that would help people in their tax bracket.
However, my mother’s retort would be that the money she would save with the Republican agenda would just have to go to help my grandmother, aunt and uncle who benefited from the Democratic agenda.
Furthermore, when she combined that reality with the fact that she believed there was more racism within the GOP than amongst the Democrats, there was no reason to consider switching sides in the political debate.
Some White people and some Republicans must realize that Black people do not vote for the best interest of White people, Hispanic people, Asian people or Native American people.
They vote for what is in their best interest.
And the color of the candidate has little to do with that.
Black people of the 21st century have enjoyed a Black president, Black vice president, Black governors and Black mayors.
The current Black community has many Black billionaires and CEOs of major corporations.
This iteration of the Black community has seen Black people shatter almost every glass ceiling in the world.
Therefore, seeing a Black person on the ballot does not impress us anymore.
The Black community wants substance and not performance.
And like every community, the Black community wants allies in political office, not adversaries.
And to many Black Americans, Black MAGA Republicans do not look like allies.
Many Black voters do not view Black Republicans like Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) and Rep. Wesley Hunt (R-Texas) with the same respect and admiration that they had for past Black conservatives like the late Colin Powell, Condoleezza Rice and Michael Steele.
And even if some current Black Republicans really care about the advancement of the Black community, many Black voters do not agree with their methods to achieve that advancement.
Therefore, many Black voters still cast their ballots for the Democrats.
- Movie Review: ‘731’ Another Film That is a Warning - September 26, 2025
